Building of precast concrete segments



1954 A. HENDERSON 2691291 BUILDING 0F PRECAST CONCRETE SEGMENTS FiledAug. 2, 1949 3 Sheefs-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

Oct. 12, 1954 A. HENDERSON 2,691,291

BUILDING OF PRECAST CONCRETE SEGMENTS IN VEN TOR.

Oct. 12, 1954 A. HENDERSON 2,691,291

BUILDING 0F PRECAST CONCRETE SEGMENTS Filed Aug. 2, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet3 INVENTOR. H4 BERT HENDE RSOA/ Patented Oct. 12, 1954 BUILDING OFPRECAST CONCRETE SEGMENTS Albert Henderson, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application August 2, 1949, Serial No. 108,131

Claims. 1

This invention relates to the art of building houses, apartments andother structures wherein these structures comprise multiples of a commonprecast reinforced concrete segment which are cast substantially in ahorizontal position, then later erected in a vertical position inabutting end to end relation. The segment is a one piece concretecasting having spaced walls supporting a roof and a floor and in somecases I use only one wall, the roof and floor projecting from the wallin cantilever fashion.

Another object of this invention is to avoid the use of segments thatare too large or unwieldy. To this end I form the building with a planeof division along its longitudinal axis and use two similar shapedsegments that abut at said plane, and thus provide a complete crosssectional unit of a building, the two segments being secured together atthe longitudinal joints by welding together reinforcing rods that areembedded in each segment. All segments may have their reinforcing weldedtogether at all the joints.

Another object of this invention is to provide multiples of a segment,each of which has short portions projecting from an inner wall toprovide one half of a hallway floor, roof and duct, so that thesesegments when erected provide two rooms with a hallway therebetween.

Another object of this invention is to install concrete partitions, doorframes, doors, windows, plaster or stucco work while the segment is in ahorizontal position so that they act as bracing when the hardenedsegment is being hoisted to a vertical position.

Another object of this invention is to provide a precast concrete endenclosure or wall for the segments which can be made detachable by usingbolts so that the building may be made longer without destroyingmaterials.

Another object of this invention is to provide a precast concretesegment having a side wall, two end walls, partitions, a roof and afloor, all integrally cast in one piece and assemblying it with anothersimilar segment in longitudinally abutting engagement and securing thetwo segments together at their longitudinal joints.

Another object of this invention is to provide similar segments for ahouse and using the same similar shaped segments for a porch for thehouse.

Another object of this invention is to provide a false gable roofportion to provide valleys where a series of assembled gable roofsegments are connected with a series of transversely disposed similarshaped segments.

Another object of this invention is to provide a precast concretechimney and fireplace made in one piece which can be attached to theside of a segment or to the precast concrete end wall or I may cast thechimney and fireplace integrally with the segment or with the end wall.

This invention will greatly reduce current high building costs andprovides fireproof, bug and rodent-proof housing for the low incomegroup which cannot afford the prices asked for houses built by presentmethods. This type of house eliminates many high priced buildingmaterials.

A complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from thefollowing detailed description and explanation which refer to theaccompanying drawings. In the drawings Fig. 1 is a perspective elevationof my precast concrete segment for small buildings.

Fig. 2 is a perspective elevation of my precast concrete end wall for mysegment in Fig. 1.

Fig; 3 is an elevation of assembled segments and end walls.

Fig. 4 is a plan of assembled segments and end walls.

Fig. 5 is a perspective elevation of assembled segments with porch.

Fig. 6 is an elevation of my small segmental buildings side by side.

Fig. 7 is a perspective of two half segments.

Fig. 8 is a front elevation of two segments, one being disposed withinthe other.

Fig. 9 is a front elevation of a segment for a multi-story building.

Fig. 9a is a longitudinal sectional view through an assembly of segmentsas formed in Fig. 9, showing the segments in section on the line IXAIX-Aof Fig. 9;

Fig. 9b is an enlarged View showing the manner in which thereinforcement members are welded together at the center lines of thesegments.

Figs. 10 and 11 are a side elevation and plan of a longitudinal segment.

Figs. 12 and 13 are fragmentary front and side elevation of the end walland chimney and fireplace.

Fig. 14 is a front elevation of two similar sloped segments.

Referring in detail to the drawings and, for the present to Fig 1,precast concrete building segment I is made in one piece and comprisesspaced walls 2, floor 3, and roof 4, and gutters 5.

I put gable roofs on my small building segments so that the concrete inthe roof is always in compression, thereby eliminating the necessity of3 roofing material, as concrete in compression never cracks.

The reinforcing in flat roofs may be prestressed so that the roofconcrete is always in compression thereby making unnecessary theapplication of roofing material such as shingles, tile, etc. Aprestressed reinforced concrete roof never leaks. The roof and walls ofmy segments may be sprayed with colored elastic coating.

Segment may have duct 3a. cast integrally to it and have opening 32; inthe floor communicating with duct 3a. The duct can convey a heating andairconditioning means and it may be used for piping or electric wires.Door frame 6 is made from structural steel and is embedded in theconcrete wall. The frame is placed in the form, then the segmentconcrete is cast around it and the reinforcement. The frame is thussecurely held and provides excellent bracing for the wall which has lostmuch of its cross section and strength due to the door opening. I mayinstall the door l while the segment is in a horizontal position. Window8 also has its frame placed in the mold before casting the segment. Thisbraces the wall and compensates for the loss of cross section in theconcrete wall so that when the segment is tilted up to a verticalposition the walls will not crack. This is very important especially inmultistory buildings.

The segment lengths are from i to 6 feet and the side walls must be verystiff. Holes 9 through the segment are for tie bolts to clamp thesegments together. Insulation board Hi is placed in the form and theconcrete is cast against it, thereby bonding the insulation boardsecurely to the segment. The insulation board It may extend all aroundthe inside of the segment and may form the inside walls or core of themold for the segment. If a separate core is used in the mold then itcould be quickly and easily extracted without having to collapse thecore. The board ill would hold the green concrete in place while thecore could be quickly removed to be used for making another segment.

Gasket H fragmentarily shown in Fig. 1 may be made of sponge rubber,asbestos or insulation board. It is applied to the segment beforeerection and it may be placed in the bottom of the mold and the concreteof the segment cast on it. This would prevent leakage in the mold andalso bond the gasket II to the segment. The gasket extends all aroundthe segment including below the gutters 5.

Fig. 2 shows the precast concrete end wall 12 for enclosing segment i.This end wall also closes on the gutters 5, duct 30!. and also the spacebelow the floor. The width of the end wall is wide enough to extend fromoutside of gutter to outside gutter. Holes 13 are provided for bolts tosecure the end wall to the segment.

Door opening id and window opening l may be provided where required. Insome cases I may cast the end wall l2 directly to the segment after thesegment is cast.

Figs. 3 and 4 show assembled standard segments 1 and l and end walls 12in one building in connection with other assembled segments and endwalls I2 disposed transversely to each other and having false roofportion It resting on some of the segments to provide a valley at thejunction of the two sets of assembled segments. False roof It may bemade from precast concrete in two pieces, each piece having a lip whichfits into the gutters of the segments on which the false roof rests. Thefalse roof is set in a mastic bed and will stop any leaking of waterunder the false roof I6.

Tie bolts ll tie the assembled segments and end walls together.

Fig. 5 shows a building made up of my segments I and end wall l2. PorchI8 is also made up of standard segments I. I may fashion a porch endwall trim and porch rail from end wall 12. I may apply the standardsegments sideways against several of the end to end arrangement of thesegments to form a side porch.

Fig. 6 shows two of my segmental buildings 19 and 20 in side by siderelationship, end walls l2 being provided with door and windows. The endwalls l2 abut side by side and cover the space between the two buildingsunder their gutters. I may provide openings in some cases in end wall l2so that gutters could drain through the end wall.

Fig. 7 shows segment 2| made up of two halves 22 and 23 and are securedat their longitudinal center line by bolts 24 at lugs 25. W'indow opening 25w has grooved upper and lower members 25b cast integrally to someof the segments where light is required.

Fig. 8 shows segment 26 made up of an outer segment 21 and inner segment28. The segments have air space 29 and segment 28 rests on and ispositioned by insulating cushions 30. This type of building would beshockproof.

Figs. 9 and 90. respectively show a multi-story building segment 31 andan assembly of such segments to form spaced rooms 32 with hallway 33therebetween and ducts 34 disposed above the floors. The building 31 ismade up of two oppositely disposed precast concrete segments, thesegments being similar and having supporting walls 35 and floors 36, andinner walls 3?. A roof 38 is formed integrally with the walls 35 and 31,as are the floor 36 and. ducts 34 and their walls 39. Balconies 40 maybe cast integrally with the segments. The reinforcing lla embedded inthe concrete of the roof floors, walls and duct may be welded .at thejoints of the segments such as at 4| as shown more clearly in Fig. 9b.Longitudinal partition 42 and cross partition 42a are made of concreteand may be installed while the segment is in a horizontal position. Dooropenings 43 may be provided in the partitions and walls 35 and 31 whererequired. Plaster coat 44 may be applied to the segment when it is alsoin a horizontal position as it will help to stiiien the segment. Outsidecoating 45 may be a veneer hardening elastic colored coating. Removablecovers 46 are used on the ducts. Tie rods Mb in holes 9a hold thesegments assembled, as do the rods H in Fig. 3.

Figs. 10 and 11 show a longitudinal precast concrete segment '47 havingend walls t8, partition walls 49 and a side wall so, a floor 5|, and aroof 52 with a gutter 53, all of which are cast in one piece. Dooropening 54 is provided where required. Windows 55 may be provided inwall '50. Two of the segments 4'! make up an entire building and arefastened together at the longitudinal vertical mid plane of thebuilding.

'Figs. 12 and 13 shows an end Wall fragment 56 and chimney and.fireplace 5'! detachably secured to the end wall or to a segment. Thechimney and fireplace may be cast integrally to the end wall or to theside of a segment, openings being provided in the end wall or segmentwall to accommodate the fireplace.

Fig. 14 shows portion of a building 58 made up of two oppositelydisposed segments 59 and having light well 60 windows 6| and skylight 62disposed in the segments. Crane run way 63 is cast integrally to thesegment; each segment has floor 64 supporting wall 66 and roof 65 andgutter 61. As the floor 64 may carry a heavy load and it may have toolong a span it is shortened and a field cast floor 68 is placed betweenthe two floors of the segments.

The reinforcing of the segment floors and the field cast floor may bewelded together and form a tie across the total width of the floor,thereby securely anchoring the tWo segments. The reinforcing on theroofs 65 may be welded at the longitudinal joint 69. The segments 59rest on field cast footings 10.

To facilitate welding of the reinforcement, pockets or recesses are leftin the concrete at the joints to render the reinforcing rods accessiblefor welding. For example, when the abutting ends of reinforcement llaare welded in Fig. 9, these pockets at 4! are filled with grout or thelike, as indicated by the dots.

The placing of insulating boards in the molds and bonding the boards tothe spaced walls, ceiling and floor, not only makes the removal of themold core easy and quicker than extraction under ordinary conditions butno collapsible core is necessary and the insulating boards can easily betrimmed at the joints where the segments meet, so that if the segmentsdo not exactly fit the boards can be made level.

In some cases I may make the segments of reinforced gypsum and I may setforms in the mold and cast the gypsum against the insulating boards,thus eliminating hand trowelling of the interior plastering.

Although I have illustrated and described but a preferred embodiment ofthe invention with a few modifications, it will be understood thatchanges in the details of construction disclosed may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appendedclaims.

I claim:

1. A multi-story building that comprises pairs of oppositely-disposedconcrete castings, each of which castings extends across one-half thewidth of the building, the pairs being alined with one another indirections longitudinally of the building, in abutting relation alongtransverse vertical planes and each casting having spaced integralvertical walls perpendicular to said planes, for the full height of thebuilding, and floor members integral therewith, to form rooms, onevertical wall of each casting being disposed in a plane parallel to thelongitudinal center line of the building and spaced laterally from saidline, to serve as one wall of a hallway, and shelf-like extensionsintegral with the hallway walls and extending crosswise of the hallwayspace, to form a floor therefor.

2. A multi-story building that comprises pairs of oppositely-disposedconcrete castings, each of which castings extends across one-half thewidth of the building, the pairs being alined with one another indirections longitudinally of the building, in abutting relation alongtransverse vertical planes and each casting having spaced integralvertical walls perpendicular to said planes, for the full height of thebuilding, and floor members integral therewith, to form rooms, onevertical wall of each casting being disposed in a plane parallel to thelongitudinal center line of the building and spaced laterally from saidline, to serve as one wall of a hallway, shelf-like extensions integralwith the hallway walls and extending crosswise of the hallway space, toform a floor therefor, and other shelf-like extensions below thefirst-named extensions, to serve as conduit walls. a

3. A building having spaced rooms with a hallway therebetween,comprising pairs of precast concrete castings, tie members holding thepairs sequentially arranged in abutting relation longitudinally of thebuilding, the castings of each pair being assembled inrelatively-opposed abutting relation, at opposite sides of thelongitudinal center line of the building, tie members holding themembers of each pair together, and inner and outer side walls formedwith each casting, floor and roof members formed integrally with theside walls, portions of the floor members extending in cantileverfashion from the inner side walls toward the longitudinal mid plane ofthe building, to serve as hall floor members.

4. A building having spaced rooms with a hallway therebetween,comprising pairs of precast concrete castings, tie members holding thepairs sequentially arranged in abutting relation longitudinally of thebuilding, the castings of each pair being assembled inrelatively-opposed abutting relation, at opposite sides of thelongitudinal center line of the building, tie members holding themembers of each pair together, and inner and outer side walls formedwith each castfloor and roof members formed integrally with the sidewalls, portions of the floor members extending in cantilever fashionfrom the inner side walls toward the longitudinal mid plane of thebuilding, to serve as hall floor members, and the roof members extendingto the longitudinal mid plane of the building for edgeto-edge engagementwith one another.

5. A building having spaced rooms with a hallway therebetween,comprising pairs of precast concrete castings, tie members holding thepairs sequentially arranged in abutting relation longitudinally of thebuilding, the castings of each pair being assembled inrelatively-opposed abutting relation, at opposite sides of thelongitudinal center line of the building, tie members holding themembers of each pair together, and inner and outer side walls formedwith each casting, floor and roof members formed integrally with theside walls, portions of the floor members extending in cantileverfashion from the inner side Walls toward the longitudinal mid plane ofthe building, to serve as hall floor members, and ledge-like projectionsextending inwardly from the inner walls, in vertically-spaced relationto the hall floor members, to thereby serve as conduit walls.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,392,402 Cottman Oct. 4, 1921 1,411,005 Dula Mar. 28, 19221,697,070 Knight Jan. 1, 1929 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date144,913 Great Britain of 1920 743,766 France of 1933 754,815 France of1933 397,695 Great Britain of 1933 536,572 Great Britain of 1940 919,044France of 1947 588,623 Great Britain of 1947

